How to create the ultimate laundry

The laundry often gets a bad rap for being a boring utility space, solely for household duties. In most busy homes, however, it sees its fair share of action. So why should it be boring?!

We think a laundry needs to be practical but it should also be a place that makes you feel good.

It’s time to say bye-bye to boring and show your laundry a little lovin’. Here are some starters.

Have fun with your tiles

Forget bland. Laundries are a great opportunity to express your style and have some fun. Considered wet spaces, tiles are a good choice of flooring in the laundry.

Don’t feel you need to match bathroom floor tiles to the rest of the house, either. A laundry is a discreet zone where we like to have a bit of fun and try something different.

Disclaimer: We don’t recommend suddenly throwing in Art Deco style tiles when the rest of the house has nothing resembling that era.

Keep it within the same theme of your overall house design, but go to town mixing up colours, shapes and patterns within the overarching theme.

The laundry is the perfect room to live out your tile fantasies. Picture: Three Birds Renovations

Top tip: If your laundry is going to double as a mud room, you might want to choose large format tiles – they have fewer grout lines so are easier to clean. Who wants to spend weekends scrubbing grout?

Great ventilation is essential

Of all the rooms in the house, the laundry probably needs ventilation the most. Good airflow will help keep it free from dreaded moisture and mould.

An external window or door works best – especially a window that can be locked open while you’re out.

If you have a door but no window, consider a glass louvre door. It’s just like a louvre window inserted into a doorframe – perfect for keeping that air flowing.

If your laundry doesn’t have access to fresh air (as many don’t), an exhaust fan is a must. If you have a European-style laundry, put the fan in the ceiling of the cupboard.

In fact, an exhaust is good to have in every laundry so you can use it on cold days when you don’t want to open the laundry to the outside.

Having said that, you can now buy condensing dryers, which dramatically reduce the moisture in a laundry – if your ventilation options are limited, this might be a good choice.

If possible, including a window in the laundry is the best way to get effective, natural ventilation. Picture: Three Birds Renovations

Flood your laundry

Can a flooded laundry ever be a good thing? Yes, but only if it’s flooded with natural light.

Not only will natural light help your stain-spotting ability, it will also make the room a more inviting space, help your plants to grow and help with ventilation as we mentioned earlier.

In Bonnie’s dream laundry she has windows and a skylight to make this room one of the lightest and brightest in the house.

Bring in light: It’s wrong to assume it’s ok for a daily utility room to be dark and dingy. Picture: Three Birds Renovations

Storage solutions are key

Your laundry will never look its best if your washing powder and fabric softener are left on display. Don’t store these containers on the counter or even on open shelves. Supermarket boxes and bottles are for behind closed doors only.

Under-counter and above-counter cupboards are essential – you can’t get enough storage in a laundry. That’s easier said than done once you add a washing machine, dryer and sink (and maybe dog-washing tub) to your layout.

You’ll find you probably have less storage space than you were planning for. That’s ok, just make sure you use every inch available.

You know how annoying it is when you run out of (or never had in the first place) long-hanging space in your wardrobe? Well, creating a laundry with no tall cupboard will feel the same.

You need somewhere to store a broom, ironing board, and other tall items that you will accumulate. Try and squeeze one into your layout, even if it’s just a small one! #betterthannothing

There’s a lot of products you’ll prefer to keep hidden from sight – so good laundry storage is a must. Picture: Three Birds Renovations

Keep it quiet

Even though it’s good to keep your laundry near the action, try to avoid locating it right next door to a bedroom or even a lounge room.

No matter which washing machine you buy, it will make some noise, especially when it’s spinning.

If you’re constructing a new laundry room, you can choose building materials that will limit the noise coming from inside your laundry, like noise-reducing insulation and plasterboard. A solid core door will also really help keep the noise down.

Practical pretties

Choose a cool stool to leave in your laundry room. It’ll be handy to reach the top cupboards and to pop the laundry basket on when the benchtop is full of folded washing. Or to hide with a cuppa and a choc bickie for five minute’s silence. #winkwink

A pendant light isn’t something you’d usually think of adding to a laundry, but when you’re making this your special room – why not? A pendant adds practical light to the room but looks good too.

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